1900
1901
1902
1903
1904
1905
1906
1907
1908 - The World I Live In by Helen Keller
1909
1910
1911
1912
1913
1914
1915
1916
1917
1918
1919
1920
1921
1922
1923
1924
1925
1926 - Blindness by Henry Green
1927
1928 - Time Importuned by Sylvia Townsend Warner
1929
1930
1931
1932
1933
1934 - Right Ho, Jeeves by P.G. Wodehouse
1935
1936
1937
1938
1939
1940
1941
1942
1943
1944
1945
1946 - Mr. Allenby Loses The Way by Frank Baker
1947
1948
1949 - Ashcombe: The Story of a Fifteen-Year Lease by Cecil Beaton
1950 - Jane Austen by Margaret Kennedy
1951
1952
1953
1954
1955
1956
1957
1958
1959
1960
1961
1962
1963
1964
1965
1966
1967
1968
1969
1970
1971
1972
1973
1974 - Look Back With Love by Dodie Smith
1975
1976
1977
1978
1979
1980
1981
1982
1983
1984
1985
1986
1987
1988
1989 - Maestro by Peter Goldsworthy
1990
1991
1992
1993
1994 - Deadline Poet by Calvin Trillin
1995
1996
1997
1998 - The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver
1999
I love the idea of this challenge. But I wonder if I'm up to it? I'm such an intuitive reader -- by which I mean I follow my feelings rather than working to a prescribed pattern. think I'll put a link on my blog and mull it over a bit.
ReplyDeleteDon't think I'll be accepting that challenge but I do wish you a very Happy New Year, and thank you for your rich and entertaining blog.
ReplyDeleteCarole
This challenge has spurred me to keep track of the publishing years of the books I read in 2012. I don't think I read many "modern" books, but we shall see what the year holds. :)
ReplyDeleteWell, this sounds like a challenge that is right up my alley! As an English teacher in an American public high school who teaches specifically American Literature, I will take this challenge (fully aware that it will most likely take me AT LEAST 2 years to accomplish:). However, I will up my own personal ante and keep it...gasp!...to solely American Literature...YIKES!!! Oh, well, all in the pursuit of knowledge and improvement of duty! Happy New Year!
ReplyDeleteGood luck with the challenge, Simon, and a very happy new year to you and your family.
ReplyDeleteHappy New Year to you and your readers Simon.
ReplyDeleteI made my lists for this challenge the moment I read about your idea, so yes I shall be joining you. Silently though, as I don't blog, so can't put links to my progress. I say lists, because I plan to do it twice over (second list will be just mystery books though). I'll be reading in chronological order, but will be allowing myself to read other books in between, and I finish when I finish. Probably in six years time, but who cares?
Good grief what a challenge! I once had a customer who was reading his way through all the major and major-minor novels of the twentieth century in date order. He bought them in order too, one at a time from 1900 onwards. He stopped ringing to order more after getting to 1911. Whether he ran out of engery or is no longer with us (he was an elderly gentleman) I don't know.
ReplyDeleteGood luck with it and happy new year.
While I won't formally take up the challenge, the list-maker in me wants to keep a list anyway to see if it can improve the breadth of my reading. Good luck with yours Simon.
ReplyDeleteHarriet - I think you could easily spend most of the year/two years reading intuitively, and then have a bit of a scramble at the end! Or just keep a track of the years, and see how the century fills up.
ReplyDeleteCarole - thank you, Carole!
Susan - lovely!
Tina - wonderful, I am very pleased to have you along - and very impressed by your twist on it! I look forward to following your progress...
ReplyDeleteKaren - thank you and thank you! Hopefully see you at some point in 2012.
Marina - what a wonderful idea! Since you don't blog, do keep me posted with how it's going. If you fancy writing a guest post for me sometime...
Catherine - what a lovely story! Reminds me of the story Virginia Woolf wrote about the girl who had to read everything in the British Library in order to gain her inheritance...
ReplyDeleteAnnabel - oo, do make a list!
Hi! I just stumbled onto your blog after googling Frank Baker's 'Before I Go Hence', then I saw this very lofty endeavor of yours. Good luck and hope you succeed within a year. I sure as hell can't do it. My eyes would fall out before I get to 1925.
ReplyDeleteMay I just ask which Virginia Woolf story you're referring to about the girl and the British Library? What's the title of that?
Thank you!
Jake
Jake - Hello! Firstly, I'd love to know how you found Before I Go Hence, what you thought of it, etc... (are you a Miss Hargreaves fan?) Secondly - I think the Virginia Woolf story was called 'A Society'... yes, a bit of difficult Googling (since I don't want to join a VW Society!) brought this up: http://www.online-literature.com/virginia_woolf/857/
ReplyDeleteHello again! Thanks for the link to the Virginia Woolf story. :)
ReplyDeleteI haven't read any of Frank Baker's books. But I saw this video called "Interview with a Book Collector" (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SYsL7BUO6c4) and the guy, Mark Valentine, mentions Baker, as well as a whole bunch of others. Then I decided to google every single one of them, and that's how I got here. I plan to read them all eventually.
Thanks again for the link!
Jake
Hi Jake! You're welcome, it's a fun story - hope you enjoy it.
ReplyDeleteI had seen that video a while ago - I am a huge fan of Miss Hargreaves, it's one of my favourite books, but although I've read it many times I've not read much else by Frank Baker. I must do so, but I'm scared of ruining Miss H for myself if his other books aren't good!